


Crystal Exploration, Inner Reflection

by SonicCeleste



Series: Crystals and Rolanberries [10]
Category: Final Fantasy XIV
Genre: :), Also there’s a reference to 5.2, Bard Warrior of Light (Final Fantasy XIV), But for now take this sorta sad softness, Eventually I’m gonna get to some lewd stuff, M/M, Miqo'te Warrior of Light (Final Fantasy XIV), See if you can spot it!
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-17
Updated: 2020-02-17
Packaged: 2021-02-28 01:55:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,528
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22775998
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SonicCeleste/pseuds/SonicCeleste
Summary: No’a Katri is curious about the crystal on his lover. G’raha wishes to accept it. Both get their wish.
Relationships: G'raha Tia | Crystal Exarch/Warrior of Light
Series: Crystals and Rolanberries [10]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1841296
Comments: 2
Kudos: 49





	Crystal Exploration, Inner Reflection

**Author's Note:**

> I’M SO SORRY I TOOK SO LONG TO POST SOMETHING
> 
> I’ve been working on this for MONTHS but recently I’ve been chilling with my friends on XIV and started shipping No’a with my two friends’ characters as an OT3 and that’s taken up all my time lately, lmao
> 
> I hope you enjoy!

“So exactly how far down does the crystal go?”

The Exarch nearly choked on the forkful of cake he had just eaten. Face turning as red as his hair, he looked up at the perpetrator who was slyly smirking. “That’s  _ hardly _ a question to ask in polite company, No’a.”

“Unless you know of a polite intruder in my room, it’s just the two of us here,” No’a pointed out, not breaking eye contact as he sipped his tea. “Besides, with how things are going I’d find out soon enough - just figured I’d ask first, in case it was something you were uncomfortable with.”

Even if it wasn’t the conversation he was expecting during their usual teatime, G’raha had to admit that he had a point. While it was still fairly early into their relationship, things were moving rather quickly, and it was almost a certainty that… intimate things would happen soon. This was just part of No’a’s process, he supposed. It was sweet, really - though he could’ve asked at another time, or at least before G’raha took a bite of the cake they’d bought together.

… Actually, that was probably on purpose. Damn him.

Regardless, the Exarch sipped his tea and thought for a moment. “I suppose… I am still loathe to call it all my own body, but I’ve long since gotten used to the crystal that I’d likely feel more self-conscious about… um… anything we planned on doing.”

No’a hummed - it felt like it had an edge of concern, but he didn’t press further. “That’s fair. I’ll likely be nervous about that too, so that’s reassuring.”

The thought of No’a Katri, infamously flirtatious Warrior of Darkness, being shy at the prospect of intimacy  _ really _ shouldn’t have excited G’raha as much as it did. He cleared his throat in an attempt to clear the thoughts out of his mind - away, G’raha Tia, come back Crystal Exarch. “As for how much… It’s actually not as much as you’d think. There’s my right arm, obviously, and from there it… trails leftwards, for lack of a better term. From what I remember it doesn’t spread past my tail base, so you may rest assured that it won’t affect any of our more... intimate moments.”

“I see…” The bard took another gulp of his tea with a wide smile that made G’raha put down the fork he had lifted to his lips. “Shame. I was wondering how I would climb your Crystal Tower.”

The Exarch hit him with a hard stare, trying to mentally push down the heat spreading across his cheeks. “Honestly… Even if that  _ were _ a necessary discussion, there is a time and a place for such things,  _ Vhano’a Katri _ ,” he said curtly, just barely hiding the satisfaction of watching No’a grimace at the use of his full name.

“Aww, don’t go all ‘old man’ on me, sweetness...”

“I can and I shall, until you stop being so… lewd. This is the only time we have today, lest you forget, and I for one would like to spend it innocently.”

“Alright, alright,” No’a finally relented, putting his teacup down to hold his hands up in surrender. “You’re fine with the crystal, that’s all I needed to know. Thank you, Raha.”

Relieved, G’raha nodded with a smile, and the two fell into a comfortable silence. Then G’raha started thinking.

Considering.

Gods, No’a was terrible influence.

Should he?

He’d feel incredibly vulnerable, but this was No’a. He’d be ok, right?

But what if things… escalated? He couldn’t miss those meetings…

The man he was centuries ago was practically yelling at him to do it.

… He was going to do it. And if he missed those meetings… Well, he’d cross that bridge when he came to it.

“No’a?”

A hum of acknowledgement as the bard finished his tea.

“Could you help me undress?”

G’raha smirked at the choked noise No’a gave out, tattooed cheeks turning a bright red. It was a petty revenge, and No’a quickly recovered from the surprise, but he took immense satisfaction in it nonetheless. “To show you the crystal, before you get  _ too _ excited - I still have those meetings within the hour.”

G’raha caught the slight pout of disappointment from the bard before he perked up again. “Um, yes, of course! But only if you want to,” No’a clarified as he stood up, the Exarch following suit. “You - and probably the entirety of the Crystarium, now that I think about it, heh, whoops - I know you’ve seen  _ me _ shirtless countless times, but that doesn’t mean you have to feel obligated to do the same.”

“I wouldn’t have asked if I didn’t feel comfortable,” G’raha replied with a soft smile and a kiss to No’a’s cheek. “But thank you for the consideration, my love.”

No’a simply nodded and started to walk over to his bed, G’raha following and taking a seat right in the middle of the mattress. The bard stood in front of him, drumming a hand on his hip with his ears wildly flicking up and down like his mind couldn’t decide if he was excited or anxious. G’raha wondered if he’d act similarly during their first time-

_ No _ . G’raha tightened his hold on his robes.  _ Those thoughts are for another day, G’raha. Exarch’s in charge now. _

No’a eventually settled on excited and put on a somewhat nervous smile as he kicked off his heeled boots and climbed onto the bed. “So where do we start?”

It was a complicated process that took longer than expected, trying to undo clasps and bits of fabric one by one - usually the Exarch just slipped the whole thing over his head - but eventually the two of them had managed to get enough of an opening for him to slip his robes down from his shoulders to pool around his hips without him having to shift from his spot on the bed. He cast a careful glance at No’a, who was… staring, an unreadable expression on his face. That was only natural, G’raha reassured himself with a deep breath; the crystal took a bit of getting used to. Wicked white, if he didn’t know that firsthand…

“Raha… You’re…  _ Wow _ .”

No’a had his hands on G’raha before he could ask what he meant, the bard practically in his lap as he followed the line across his chest where crystal met skin with a delicate touch that made the Exarch shiver. “A-ah…”

“Hm? Are you alright?” No’a asked, instantly pulling his hands away as he looked up with concern. G’raha’s face flushed in embarrassment and his ears fell. “Oh! Oh, no, everything’s fine, i-it’s just… um…”

_ It’s cold? _ A lie.  _ Your touch sets my whole body alight? _ Not the message he wants to send right now. Twelve above, why wasn’t there a good way to admit he’d been touch-starved for well over a century?

It was silent for a moment as he wracked his brain for an excuse until No’a made a quiet “ohhhhh” sound in realisation and leant his forehead against the Seeker’s with a soft grin that distracted G’raha from his thoughts.

“First time with the crystal?” he asked. G’raha nodded almost instantly - that would work.

“I… I don’t think anyone else besides myself has seen it until now. I’m relieved that you seem to be alright with it so far… To be honest, I wasn’t entirely sure how you’d react upon seeing it.” He took a deep breath and relaxed his shoulders that he didn’t realise he had hunched up. “I’m alright now. Pray, proceed.”

No’a simply smiled gently in reassurance before going back to his exploration, taking his time to appreciate every last inch of the Exarch on display as he so rightly deserved. Deciding to take it slow, he slipped G’raha’s crystalline hand between both of his own, committing the way it felt to memory. It was cool but not cold; uneven but with no sharp edges; solid but strangely pliable, able to curl and flex like any other hand, with a steady pulse of aether that he’d noticed before during their times together but never properly took in. It was surprisingly calming - did the aether copy G’raha’s heartbeat? He hoped so.

“Does it hurt at all?” No’a asked casually, though the hint of concern in his voice was obvious.

_ Lately, yes. I’m worried. _

“No,” G’raha shook his head with a reassuring smile. “Once it appeared, it’s as if it were still flesh and bone.”

“I see,” the bard replied with a relieved sigh. “I’m glad. I don’t want you to suffer any more than you have.”

_ Oh, No’a… I can’t tell you. Not yet. I’m sorry. _

Oblivious to the other’s thoughts, No’a raised the crystal hand to his lips and gently kissed his way up G’raha’s arm from palm to shoulder, his ears subconsciously flicking forward to catch the breathy giggle the Exarch let out as he squirmed in his seat.

“Ticklish?” He asked with a smirk.

“Somewhat,” G’raha replied sheepishly. “From what I gather the crystal is tied directly to my aether, so it’s, um… sensitive.”

“I see~” No’a made a mental note to find out exactly  _ how _ sensitive when the time was right - not only was it excellent teasing material, it meant hearing that  _ adorable _ laugh some more. “Now then, from here…”

It was just as G’raha had said; from his arm the crystal spiked and jutted leftwards at all different angles. Some reached across the entirety of his chest, a few veins of gold visible beneath; some curled into the dip of his spine; a few were merely a couple of ilms from his shoulder before they broke off, shards peppering his skin like freckles (which No’a noticed G’raha still had a faint selection of on his shoulders. Adorable.) There seemed to be no rhyme or reason to the way the crystal had grown, but there was a certain beauty in its wild, winding path.

“It’s beautiful,” No’a affirmed. G’raha simply hummed. “I mean it, sweetness. There’s no need to feel so shy about it.”

G’raha’s cheeks flushed at the mention of his nickname, but said nothing. It was one thing to be used to the crystal, another to show it to your lover in a burst of confidence, but when you’re focusing on it, staring and thinking about it… the mind tends to wander. At least No’a was sating his curiosity - that was all that mattered right at that moment.

Tricky, nimble fingers made their way upwards to trace the crystal along G’raha’s cheek (their owner heavily resisting the urge to kiss it), slowly sliding down his neck and to his left shoulder, where the crystal tapered off into shards. The light from the room made each tiny piece shine a bright blue, and No’a couldn’t help but stare in awe until something else nearby caught his eye. “Oh! That’s right, I almost forgot you had a tattoo here…”

Any lingering positive thoughts G’raha may have had very quickly faded once he glanced at where No’a was busy admiring and running his thumb along the red eye tattoo of the Students Of Baldesion. He smiled sadly; it felt like so long ago that he’d had it marked on his arm - one of his many reckless decisions during his journey of self-discovery as a young man, to ensure his proud academic history would be known to all. Now, it was always hidden away under his robes, shards of crystal interrupting the lines like chipped off pieces of a painted stone monument - imperfect and fading, a distant memory of what he once was before he became naught more than the legacy of the Tower.

Naught more than a vessel.

No’a’s ear flicked, though his gaze never shifted from G’raha’s arm. “What’s wrong?”

G’raha shook his head. “It’s nothing, really. Just… remembering a bygone age.”

No’a hummed, unconvinced, but didn’t say anything further. Instead, he pressed a kiss to the tattoo on the Exarch’s arm, slipping his hands down until they grasped G’raha’s soft flesh-and-bone one and held it tightly. G’raha closed his eyes, feeling grounded by the sensation - as though the bard was the only thing keeping him down to the earth of the First, as though he’d drift away if No’a were to ever let go. Maybe… maybe he  _ would _ .

… No, he couldn’t think like that. He focused on the comforting feeling of No’a’s presence instead.

The bard cleared his throat overdramatically. “My dearest love, if I may wax poetic…”

“When don’t you?” G’raha interrupted with a knowing smile. No’a shamelessly grinned in response before his gaze fell down to the hand he was holding, gently bringing it to his lips in a kiss before tracing the leather bands around it as he thought.

“... Your body is something to be revered, Raha. A testament not only to the mighty Allagan technology of your heritage, which you spent your life trying to discover and understand… but also a testament to  _ you, _ and everything you’ve gone through in your lifetime. Your red hair turning silver matches your passionate, yet wise personality perfectly; your skin, still as young and soft as it was when we first met, now draped in markings and scars and crystal - all of them, life’s many gifts for you to remember what has led you to this point. This body, every last ilm of it, is  _ yours, _ connected to the Tower or no. You’re perfect and whole just the way you are, Raha, and I swear to you, I won’t let you forget that as long as I live.”

“... Ah.”

It was a rare occasion, G’raha being lost for words - and it was always No’a who was the perpetrator, it seemed. It was like the bard had read his mind, addressing all his insecurities - not a difficult feat for No’a when he often called his lover an open book, but even so, it was…

“Sweetness, you’re crying. You ok?”

G’raha blinked in surprise and felt something warm roll down his cheek. Oh. So he was.

“I… Um, my apologies…”

No’a smiled gently and held his crystal-embedded cheek, wiping the tears away with his thumb. “Don’t apologise. I’m hoping they’re happy tears?”

G’raha nodded and reached up to hold No’a’s hand with his flesh-and-blood one - then hesitated before instead using his crystal one. A more awkward position, but a motion that No’a could tell meant a lot to the Exarch. “Thank you for this, No’a. I… I have a lot to think about.”

No’a nodded - then grinned, leaning in to kiss the Exarch gently. “If you’re still doubtful, I can always show you  _ just how much _ I love your body-“

“LOOK at that, i-it’s almost time for that meeting! I should really dash off…” G’raha practically leapt off the bed, pulling his hood over his eyes as he grabbed his staff by the door.  _ Wicked white, this man would actually kill him with embarrassment one day. _

“Love you Raha!” No’a called out as G’raha opened the door.

… He couldn’t  _ not _ answer. For all his teasing, No’a did actually help today.

“I love you too, No’a. Tomorrow?”

“Until then, my love~”

Theirs was a strange relationship sometimes, but let none say it wasn’t filled with love.


End file.
